by Tineka Brown
The Billionaire’s Crush
Will the odds be against her or will she win?
A sexy overcoming the odds marriage romance by Tineka Brown of BWWM Club. Features another free bonus book.
Olympia loves her job as a lounge singer at a small bar, but she hasn’t had her big break yet…
Until billionaire Everett pulls her aside after a show and offers her a chance of a lifetime!
Now in Las Vegas, performing at Everett’s swanky casino, Olympia is on top of the world.
Except for one thing: Olympia’s abusive ex boyfriend has been hired to perform with her!
And when Olympia starts to heat things up with Everett, you better believe her ex gets jealous!
On top of that drama, Everett must come to terms with a racist family who doesn’t approve of Olympia at all…
With the odds stacked against them, will Olympia and Everett find the love they so desperately crave?
Find out in this emotional yet sexy romance by Tineka Brown of BWWM Club.
Suitable for over 18s only due to sex scenes so hot, you'll want to escape to Vegas!
Tip: Search BWWM Club on Amazon to see more of our great books.
Get Another BWWM eBook Free!
Hi there. As a special thank you for buying this ebook, for a limited time I want to send you another one completely free of charge directly to your email! You can get it by clicking the cover below or going here:
Direct link: www.afroromancebooks.com/love-bwwm-romance-books
This book is so exclusive you can't even buy it. When you download it I'll also send you updates when new books like this are available.
Copyright © 2018 to Tineka Brown and AfroRomanceBooks.com. No part of this book can be copied or distributed without written permission from the above copyright holders.
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Marrying The Pastor's Billionaire Son
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Get Another BWWM Ebook Free
BWWM Book Of The Week
More Hot BWWM Books You'll Love
Chapter 1
“But right or wrong… I can’t get along… without you.”
Olympia Jackson gazed out into the blackness of the lounge, blinded by the stage lights that illuminated her — her dark brown, velvet skin, tight-curled afro, the sequins on her black dress glinting like blinking lights. She lowered her voice gently, still singing, letting the final note carry into silence.
The lights turned down and she could see out into the crowd — a decent turnout, for a Thursday evening. About a hundred faces stared up at her, dimly lit by the orange glow of the tealight candles on each table. A few more were staring into drinks or at each other.
Olympia smiled as the music faded and the stage lights dimmed further and went out.
“Thank you,” she said, her lips brushing the microphone. She turned on a heel and walked offstage, behind the curtain, leaving the band to play her out.
There was a bouquet of flowers sitting on the dressing room table. For a moment, her chest tightened with worry. But the card was signed by someone whose name she didn’t recognize.
Everett LeBlanc, she thought to herself, turning the card over in her hands. A name and a phone number — no other information. She ran the name through her memory, squinting into the mirror as she tried to remember if she’d ever met an Everett LeBlanc. But no faces came to mind.
She shrugged and sat at the vanity, touching up her makeup.
A moment later there was a knock at the door.
“Come in,” she called.
A shadowed figure appeared in the doorway as Olympia turned.
“You were great tonight.” The man stepped fully into the room. He was tall — about six inches taller than Olympia, even in the heels she was wearing.
“Thank you,” she said, turning to face him. She squinted at him, pursing her lips. “Have we met?”
“I don’t think so.” The man offered her a warm smile and put out his hand. The glint of a silver ring on his pinky caught Olympia’s eye for a second. “I’m Everett. Everett LeBlanc.”
Olympia took his hand. “Olympia Jackson — but I guess you already know that.”
He nodded. “Do you have time to chat? Let me buy you a drink.”
“Listen, Everett… I’m not really interested in--”
He put up a hand. “Relax. I want to talk business.”
Olympia’s eyes widened. “Business? Like… you’ve got a gig for me?”
“A hell of a gig.”
Putting on her best showbiz smile, Olympia offered her hand. “Lead the way, then. Everett.”
They crossed the lounge floor and settled in a booth toward the back of the large room. Everett waved his hand at a passing waiter and ordered a scotch. He raised an eyebrow at Olympia.
“Oh, uh… rum and coke, please.”
Everett smiled and folded his hands on the table. “So, Olympia. Let me tell you a bit about what I’ve got planned.”
“I’m listening.”
“I own a casino in Las Vegas. Or, rather, I’m about to open a casino. That’s where you come in. I want the grand opening to be an event that people will remember. I want it to be spectacular.” Everett gesticulated grandly at the word. Olympia smiled. She’d seen the same type of gesture from countless old white men — music producers, label execs, and it usually meant nothing. For some reason, though, it was a move that suited Everett.
She tried to guess at his age as he spoke. Early thirties, probably. Her eyes settled on the patches of grey that were beginning to show in the dark brown hair at his temples. It made him look distinguished, somehow. Not old, but… experienced.
“I’m hiring a couple of singers — I want it to be a real old-world, big-band jazz kind of thing. You know? Old Hollywood type of vibe. And I think you’d be perfect. I mean, gosh. Watching you sing… it’s like Billie Holiday reincarnated.”
Another line that Olympia had heard before. “Actually,” she said, “I prefer to think I’m like Olympia Jackson. The one — the only.”
Everett grinned at this. “That’s great. I love it… your confidence. You’re going to be amazing for this. I’ll pay you well for the gig, and who knows? I know some people in the music industry, I’m sure they’re also going to like what they see, or rather, hear.”
The waiter returned and placed their drinks on the table. Olympia took a sip of her rum and coke and smiled at Everett, drawing a finger over the rim of the glass. “All the way in Las Vegas, though… how am I going to get out there?”
“Oh, I’ll fly you. All expenses paid, doll.”
Doll. Olympia almost laughed. This man was straight out of some old noir movie.
“Well, I like the sound of that. And how long am I going to be away? I’ve got people here who pay to see me, you know.” She was only half joking, playing into the bit. “I can’t leave ‘em hanging.”
“Of course, of course. I need you in Vegas for two weeks. A day to get settled, ten days to rehearse, a day after the show for some downtime. I’ve got it all planned out.” He swirled the scotch in his glass as he talked, waiting until Olympia was nodding again and smiling her catl
ike smile at him before taking a sip.
“So, you’ll put me up? For the whole two weeks?”
“Like I said, all expenses paid.”
Olympia looked out into the crowded lounge. The air felt heavy but charged. A voice in her head was screaming at her to take the deal, to run with it, but her rational mind prevailed.
“Can I have a day to think about it?”
“Absolutely. No pressure. You have my card?”
“You left your phone number with the flowers, yes.”
“Well.” Everett fished a business card out of his pocket and handed it to her. “Take this one, as well. Just so you have it. I need to know by midnight tomorrow.” He stood and knocked back the remainder of his scotch. “But don’t you dare tell me you don’t think you’re good enough.”
“Oh, no sir.”
Everett smiled and walked out of the lounge, leaving Olympia to nurse her drink, feigning a pensive mood when really, her every molecule was vibrating with excitement.
*****
Olympia’s apartment felt even smaller than usual when she arrived home in the wee hours of the morning. She flicked on the light and went into the kitchen to pour herself a glass of water.
Las Vegas. A casino grand opening. The thoughts swirled in her head, mingling with the slight buzz from the alcohol.
“Hey, Mitts.” Olympia’s cat brushed against her leg as she walked from the kitchen to the living room. Not much of a walk, really — a partial dividing wall was all that separated her kitchen from her tiny living room. She reclined on the loveseat and let Mitts jump up beside her, stroking the cat gently as he settled on her lap.
Her first concern would be finding someone to take care of the cat for two weeks. She fired off a text to her friend Alex.
Well, I guess that’s telling, she thought — wasting no time in making the arrangements usually meant her heart was already set on the trip. She smiled and scratched Mitts behind the ears. “Guess I’ll be gone for a couple of weeks, kitty.”
The cat purred in response.
The night passed slowly, with Olympia drifting in and out of an odd, half-dreaming state. She was on a stage, not her usual lounge but one much bigger, with an audience that she couldn’t see, much less count. All the same, she was aware of a huge number of people, watching her, cheering for her.
She would grin and begin crooning the opening lines to You’re My Thrill, then the scene would fade, and she’d be in her bed, blinking up at the dark ceiling. Even hours later, she still felt an electric charge running through her.
Could this be it? My big break? She wondered.
Don’t get ahead of yourself!
When she finally fell asleep in earnest, it was past four in the morning, and when she was awakened again by the sunlight she felt exhausted, but giddy.
*****
“I’ll just need you to sign at the bottom.” Everett was sitting with his hands in a steeple as his lawyer gestured to a signature line on the final page of a thick stack of legal documents. Olympia clicked her pen as she skimmed the text.
Her phone call to Everett had incited a series of meetings — they’d been sitting at the same dusty table in the lounge for two hours now, Olympia stifling a yawn every five minutes, or so it seemed. The room lacked the romance that it had when the lights were dimmed.
Olympia had signed plenty of contracts in her 26 years, so she had a pretty good idea of when she was being cheated. Luckily, Everett seemed to be on the up-and-up. She clicked the pen a final time and scrawled her signature over the line.
“Perfect. So, here’s my card.” The lawyer passed Olympia a card that was almost identical to Everett’s.
Everett, for his part, had been pretty quiet for this portion of the meeting. Possibly a good sign — he trusted his lawyer. Olympia couldn’t help but notice that his eyes had barely left her the whole time. Granted, the lounge in midday wasn’t much to look at, but she was starting to feel vaguely self-conscious. Had he expected her to look the same as she did last night? A sequined dress and heavy eyeshadow wasn’t exactly an everyday look. Her hair, on the other hand, remained an untameable halo around her bare face.
She looked at Everett pointedly, and he flashed her a smiled. “Well, I guess that’s it?” He directed his question at the lawyer.
“Yep. Unless Ms. Jackson here has any further questions?”
Olympia chewed her lip for a moment before answering. “Um. No, I don’t think so. I’ll call you if I do.”
“Exactly. Alright, well my job here is done.” The lawyer stood and put out his hand, which Olympia took with grace and smile.
“Pleasure,” she said.
“Oh, all mine.” He turned and nodded at Everett before heading for the exit.
Olympia and Everett sat in silence for a moment, before Everett cleared his throat and said, “so, you’ll be ready to leave in two days?”
“Yeah. I just have to make sure that my friend can look after my cat.”
Everett smiled at her, the same warm smile that he’d given her the night before. Olympia had already realized that the man had several different smiles for different situations, but this one seemed the most genuine. Why me? She wondered. Normally when men smiled at her there was something predatory behind their eyes, but in Everett she detected nothing of the sort.
“I should be going, but I’ll me you at the airport at 9 a.m. sharp on Tuesday.”
Olympia nodded. That giddy energy flooded her again.
*****
“Las Vegas, hey? So, are you going to be staying in one of those swanky hotels on the strip, or some dive motel?”
Olympia made a face at Alex. The latter scribbled something in her notebook — she was taking notes on when to feed Mitts.
“I hope the former. If it’s the latter I’ll complain… if he can afford to open his own casino, he can afford to put me up in style for two weeks.”
“You’re damn right,” Alex muttered. “So, no milk?”
“No milk. It’s bad for their stomachs, you know.” Olympia scratched Mitts’ belly as if to demonstrate. She sat down on the sofa next to the cat and stared at the empty suitcase that she pulled out the previous night. One day to pack, and she hadn’t even started.
“What about the guy?” Said Alex.
“What about him?”
“Is he cute?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Olympia turned around to stare at her friend through the pass-through in the kitchen wall.
Alex laughed and shrugged. “Pardon me for noticing, but you seem extra excited about this gig. And maybe that’s just ‘cause it’s in a cool location, but, I dunno. It would be nice if the guy was cute, wouldn’t it be?”
Olympia looked back at the suitcase. “I guess. I mean, yeah. He’s cute. He’s pretty young to be opening a casino, too… But honestly I think I’m more excited to get away from here for a while.”
Alexis’ face turned serious as she walked around the dividing wall and sat next to Olympia on the couch. “He hasn’t been bothering you again, has he?”
He in this case would mean Olympia’s ex — Valentine. The young singer shuddered slightly as she remembered their last meeting. The relationship had not ended well. Well, nothing about that relationship had gone well at all. Sometimes she wondered if she’d spent the whole thing in some sort of half-drunk haze. How else could she have allowed herself to put up with that?
“I’m sorry.” Alex was shaking her head. “Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“No, no, it’s okay. I’m fine. Just… we did spend a lot of time in this apartment. Sometimes just random things bring up bad memories.”